St. Paul daily globe., 1887-08-21
SWEPT INTO A CAVERN.

An OlO Hunter Makes Ir1p TO
the Earth's Interior and Makes
Wonderful Discovery.
In the canyon of the PopOOgie from
which rushes the Popoogie river at a
point seven miles above Lander, New,
is what is called the ''Sink."
Here the river sinks abruptly from
sight, disappearing in lofty and ap-
parently impenetrable wall of rock. A
quarter of mile below the stream
emerges stronger, clearer and more
sparkling than ever.
Jacob Gaylor, an old hunter, has
found and penetrated the secret passage.
Proceeding to the spot where the wild
mountain stream fOamed and ragged
against the wall of rock, GaylOr re-
moved his clothing, attached one end of
stout rope sixty feet in. length to a
convenient tree, and fastening the other
end to his waist and diving deep into
the raging waters, trusted himself to
the current. He was swept away with
velocity akin to that of a bullet, and
scarcely had he started i'm his wild jour
ney before it was over. The strain of
the rope brought him to the surface,
and sensation of relief shot through
him as he realized that no rock wall
pressed UUW0 10 comm MIN.
On getting the water out of his eyes,
Gaylor opened them in semi-obScurity
"a sort of late twilight. His first care
was to land and free himself from the
rope. He found himself in a large
cavern, into which the scanty light was
thrown from crevices in therOcky roof far
ahead, and through the center of which
rushed the waters of the POpo0gie.
These waters flowed in deep trench,
followed by their own action through
ages i'll the solid rock which tloored the
cavern. Following the stream for 100
yards, the adventtlrer found himself
gazing On a sight which sent thrill
of horror through even him. The stream
abruptly entered a huge cylindrical
shaft sunk in the floor of the cayer N.
The mouth of this shaft was fully twenty
feet in circumference, and GaylOr could
hear the water roaring far below in the
depths. This shaft was at the
extremity of the cavern, and
Gaylor began to fear that
he was caught in death-trap. He be-
gan an anxious and hurried search for
mode of egreSS from the cavern. and at
last discovered narrow opening in the
walls about midway between the point
where the waters entered the cavern
and the shaft in which they disappeared.
Passing with great difficulty through
this opening, GaylOr was suddenly pre-
cipitated distance of twenty feet.
Bruised and half stunned, he gathered
himself up and saw that he was in
second cavern considerably larger than
that from which he had Just emerged.
The light in this Subterranean room was
much better than in the one above it,
and Oh looking around him Gaylor per-
ceived in the cavern's center huge
column composed of baSalt; at
the same time his ears Informed
him of a muffled = but heavy
roar in the immediate vicinity. AS
he approached the baSaft column, which
reached to the cavern'S roof thirty feet
above. this roaring waxed louder and he
felt a jarring sensation. Walking up to
the column he placed his hand upon its
glittering dark-green surface and felt it
quiver beneath his touch, while the
muff1ed roar grew almost deafening,
The baSalt column of the lower cavern
was the shaft OF the upper cavern. 1t
was hollow and through it poured the
waters of this hidden passage. This
immense rock tube was Just thirty feet
in circumference, which, baSing the
calculation of the circumference of the
mouth of the shaft in the upper cavern,
would make the walls of the tube
thickness of about four feet. GayIor
now continued his search for a way of
escape, and soon found where the waters
of the hidden passage, after emerging /
from the basalt tube, brought up against
the cavern wall. Rightly conjecturing
that this was the point from which the
water returned to the light of day, the
advepturer plunged in deep and almost
instantly found himself beyond the
hidden passage and swimming in waters
that Sparkled beneath the sun.